Light-buoy.



UNlTED STATES GEORG wItunLM twin, or STOCKHOLM, AND oAnL IIENRTK MALMo,SWEDEN.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAMSTEN, OF

LlGHT-BUOYL SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 649,328,dated May 8, 1900.

Application filed December 28, 1897. Serial No. 664,012. No model) T0(1. whom it 72mg concern.-

Be it known that we, GEORG \VILHELM LYTH, residingin Stockholm, and CARLHEN- RIK RAMSTEN, residing in Malmo, Sweden, subjects of the King ofSweden and Norway, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inLight-Buoys, (for which we have obtained patents in Sweden, No. 6,587,dated February (3, 1895, No. 7,927, dated November 6, 1896, and No.8,250, dated July 22,

1896, and in Great Britain, No. 6,580, dated March 25, 1896,) of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention has reference to certain improvements in light-buoys, theobject being to render the light of such a buoy easily distinguishablefrom otherlights. For this purpose the lantern of the buoy is providedwith colored strips or narrow pieces of glass, arranged around the lightin such a way that it will, if viewed from a distance, show a lightchanging from white to colored, and vice versa when the light-buoy ismoved to and fro around its axis. The lamp used is suitable for burningpetroleum or the like, and ought to emit light all around and to burnwith a steady flame even in a severe storm and to continue burning withthe same in tensity of light during along time without attention. Theoil-reservoir is located wholly beneath the lens arrangement of the lampand is placed so near to it that the wick will be able to carry upsufficient oil during the whole of the time that the lamp has to burnwithout the reservoir having to be replenished. For that reason thereservoir must hold a considerable quantity of oil and be made withcomparatively large horizontal dimensions and small depth in order toprevent the oil-level from sinking so low as to prevent the wick fromcarrying up the necessary quantity of oil with certainty.

The lantern may be either fixed directly to the buoy or attached to itby means of a balland-socket joint and be fitted with a balanceweight.

The buoy, which may be of conical or other shape, is kept in a verticalposition by a weight attached to its lower part and is provided withinclined planes or with sections of a screw-thread, placed in such a wayas to cause the buoy to turn to and fro about its vertical axis as it ismoved up and down by the waves oraffeeted by the currents. The buoyshould be secured on its station by a slack mooring, so that itsmovements maybe as free as possible.

If the lantern is kept upright by a balanceweight, the pendulum of thelatter is steadied by means of chains running over rollers and providedwith elastic stoppers or springs to soften the working of the balance ina rough sea.

In the accompanying drawings a form of the buoy is shown.

Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of the buoy; and Fig. 2, anelevation of the lantern to a larger scale and in part in section.

1 is the buoy; 2 2, weights on the lowerpart of it; 3, the part on thebuoy to which the mooring-chain is to be fixed, and 4 4 the inclinedplanes on the outside of the buoy.

5 is the lantern.

Inside the lens system of the lantern there is erected a framework 6,that carries two rings 7 and 8 and a grooved ring 9.

10 10 are the narrow pieces of glass inserted between the rings 7 and Sand resting in thering 9. If dark screens are used, they may be arrangedin a like manner, but should leave aspace between each other. The glasspieces 10 may be arranged outside the lens 11, if desired.

The lantern is supported by a balanced framework 12, mounted on thesuperstructure of the buoy by means of a ball-andsoeket joint 13. To thelower part of the weighted arm 14 of said framework is fixed a suitablenumber of chains or ropes 15, preferably wire ropes, passing throughguidingeyes 16, preferably provided with rollers fixed to the inside ofthe buoy at a suitable level. The parts of the ropes below the eyesshould have a sufficient weight or be provided with special weights 17,and the ends may be connected as shown.

18 are india-rubber buffers.

The burner 19 of the lamp consists of an annular wick-tube 20,perforated at the hottom. The bottom .of the oil-reservoir 21 hasanopening from which extends a tube 22 into the central air-tube of theburner.

23 is a vessel below the bottom of the oilreservoir, and 24 24 tubespassing through said reservoir 21 and through the bottom plate 25 of thelantern in order to allow air to pass from the inside of the lensarrangement to the vessel 23. 26 26 are two small holes pierced throughthe bottom of said vessel 23, which are of use sometimes for the' steadyburning of the lamp.

27 27 are holes in the bottom plate 25, and 28 a deflector above saidholes.

The reservoir 21 is provided with radially or almost-radially arrangedpartition-walls, perforated at its lower part (not shown in thedrawings) in order to lessen the movements of the oil in the reservoir.

The strips of glass may be either placed apart from each other, so thatthe uncolored light shines forth between them, or close together,inwhich latter case two adjacent strips ought to have different colors.

- In the words colored strips of glass in the following claims we meandark screens, too. Having now described our invention, what We claim asnew, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination of a buoy, a lantern, colored strips of glass aroundthe light, and inclined surfaces on the body of the buoy, substantiallyas and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination of a buoy, a lantern mounted on abalance, coloredstrips of glass around the light, and inclined surfaces on the body ofthe buoy, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination of the buoy 1, the lantern 5, mounted on a weightedbalance 12, the balland-socket joint 13 between the balance and thebuoy, the steadying-chains 15, the colored strips of glass 10 around thelight, and inclined surfaces 4 on the body of the buoy, substantially asand for the purpose set forth.

4. The combination of the buoy 1, the lantern 5, the oil-reservoir 21 ofthe lamp, the central air-tube 22, the vessel 23, the tubes 24, 24, theperforated plate and the deflector 28, the colored strips of glass 10,the weighted balance 12, the ball-and-socket joint 13', thesteadying-chains 15, and the inclined surfaces 4, substantially as andfor the purpose set forth.

5. A buoy having a weight to keep it in a vertical position and at itsupper end a lantern provided with colored strips around the light, meansfor attaching slack mooring to the side of the buoy and inclinedsurfaces on the body of the buoy to cause the buoy to turn to and froabout its vertical axis as it is moved up and down by the waves,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification inthe presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORG WILHELM LYTH. CARL IIENRIK RAMSTEN. Witnesses:

FREDRIK L. ENoUIsT, E. G. WINDAI-IL.

